For Mentors
The 海角射区’s preservice teachers are particularly encouraged to see themselves as beginning teachers (rather than ‘student’ teachers) and to consider the professional responsibilities and attitudes required of them. While in your school, the preservice teachers have been asked to carefully consider all Standards and descriptors and identify areas where they may have gaps so that they might actively seek to fill those gaps whilst on later professional experience placements.
Your support in helping them have experiences that develop them as Graduate teachers is much appreciated.
The Mentor’s Dillybag has been developed to help you understand and execute your specific role. Please click on the tabs below to learn more.
Background documents
- Key contacts to help you support your PST - Quick Contacts
- The shorthand - Terms and Acronyms
Professional Experience (Placement) Reports
UC requires Mentors to complete reports for every Professional Experience Placement – an Interim Report is required for placements that are longer than 10 days and a Final Report is required for all placements– regardless of the level of placement (ie. Beginning, Intermediate or Final).
The Interim Report serves as a progress report allowing you, the PST and the Professional Experience Team at UC to understand the trajectory of the current placement and allows for remedial actions if necessary. The Final Report records the outcome of the placement.
Professional Experience (Placement) Reports are legal documents that exist for two reasons:
- To provide a detailed and accurate representation of the preservice teacher’s placement.
- Act as evidence of practicum days completed by the preservice teacher.
We are aware that there is a possibility for confusion to arise with the use of the term ‘Final’ to describe both a ‘Level of Placement’ and a ‘Type of Report’. We may change the nomenclature to avoid this in the future. In the meantime please note:
- Placement Levels: Beginning, Intermediate, Final
- Placement Reports: Interim, Final
We provide the following examples to guide you in the completion of the Professional Experience (Placement) Reports.
- An Interim Report
- A Final Report - for an Intermediate Secondary Placement
- A Final Report - for a Final Primary Placement
We have created a guide to the completion of the form you need to use to submit a report (whether an Interim or Final Report) and are always happy to help if there are any issues. Please click on the links below for the guide and the form itself. Contact us via email or phone to discuss (See Quick Contacts list above). Please note that the Report requires the use of a digital signature. This can be achieved, and the report completed,
Early Childhood Settings
- ECE Final Report Instructions
- Early Childhood Educator (ECE) Professional Experience Report template (interactive PDF)
School Based Settings
- Instructions for completing the School based 'Professional Experience Report'
- School Based Professional Experience Report Template (Interactive PDF)
Intervention and Support
Intervention and Support can be requested at any time there are concerns regarding the successful completion of the placement. The request is to be made by the MT or School Professional Experience Coordinator (SPEC) to peoffice@canberra.edu.au This initiates support and intervention from the UC Faculty Placement Team.
TQI Accredited Professional Learning
Mentoring a preservice teacher attracts up to 5 hours of TQI teacher identified professional learning. Please note this when you register your professional learning with TQI each and every time you mentor a UC preservice teacher.
Mentor Teacher Payments
UC coordinates payments through the following payroll systems:
- ACT public schools - the ACT Shared Services payroll system
- NSW public schools - the EDConnect payroll system
- Catholic schools belonging to the Archdiocese of Canberra and Goulburn - the Catholic Education Office payroll system
- Independent schools – the school’s finance and payroll team
UC will provide reports to the School Professional Experience Coordinator (SPEC) at your school at the beginning of each term, for the previous term’s professional placements. It is important, to ensure timely payment of your mentor payments each term, that final reports and confirmation of the payment reports are provided to UC by the specified due dates. If a student has not submitted a final report, payment to you can still be made following the submission of a “Mentor teacher claim form”. Please do email peoffice@canberra.edu.au if you have any questions regarding this process.
Placements at many stages
Our PSTs undertake placements throughout their degree. The tasks required of their mentor vary depending on the unit the PST is doing. The relationship between PST and Mentor is critical to the success of the placement at every stage. To foster that relationship, it is important not only for the PST to understand the class, school and system they are working in but equally that Mentors understand the context of their PST’s placement.
Below, you will find information relating to each of the Units that have a Placement component. PSTs under your mentorship will be undertaking one of these units.
Placement Levels
- Beginner placements focus on foundational skills, building responsive relationships and starting to engage with the teaching and learning cycle within the educational environment.
- Intermediate placements involve more complex tasks, including advanced planning, assessment, and a deeper engagement with the educational community.
- Final placements aim to consolidate all previous learning and experiences, ensuring that pre-service teachers are ready to take on full teaching responsibilities and demonstrate the proficiency required of a graduate teacher.
- These differences help students progressively build their skills and confidence as they advance through their studies.
Typical Expectations
Observation Placement
Early Childhood Settings
- EC Beginning Placement Expectations
- EC Intermediate Placement Expectations
- EC Final Placement Expectations
Primary School Settings
- Primary Beginning Placement – Professional Education Contexts
- Primary Beginning Placement – Curriculum and Assessment in Primary Education
- Primary Intermediate Placement – Education for Diversity in Primary Education
- Primary Intermediate Placement – Planning, Assessing and Reporting
- Primary Intermediate Placement – Learning and Development in Primary Education
- Primary Final Placement – CAPSTONE
- Primary Final Placement – Teachers as Professionals
Secondary School Settings
- Secondary Beginning Placement – Curriculum, Assessing, Planning & Reporting
- Secondary Beginning Placement – Curriculum and Assessment in Secondary Education
- Secondary Intermediate Placement – Teaching Secondary Methods
- Secondary Final Placement – CAPSTONE
- Secondary Final Placement – Teachers as Professionals
- Secondary Final Placement – Teaching Secondary Methods
AITSL mentoring resources – supervising PSTs
- A suite of four online modules covering effective partnerships, practice analysis, making judgements, and unpacking the Graduate Standards.
Faculty of Education resources
Journal articles
- Are You Ready to be a Mentor
- Mentoring preservice teachers
- When style meets pattern in mentoring talk
- Judgementoring and other threats to school based mentoring
- PSTs’ Sense of Belonging
- Characteristics of an effective development program for mentors of preservice teachers
- Project Evidence Responding to the Changing PL needs of mentors in ITE
- Unsung Heroes Exploring the roles of school based professional experience coordinators in Australian preservice teacher education
- Mentoring conversations in preservice teacher supervision knowledge for mentoring in categories of participation
- What Do Student Teachers Want in Mentor Teachers?: Desired, Expected, Possible, and Emerging Roles
- The Many Faces of Mentor-Mentee Relationships in a Pre-Service Teacher Education Programme
- Why mentor? Linking mentor teachers’ motivations to their mentoring conceptions
- Elements of a quality pre-service teacher mentor: A literature review
- Thriving, not just surviving: The impact of teacher mentors on pre-service teachers in disadvantaged school contexts
- 10 good reasons to mentor a student teacher
Providing feedback
Classroom observation is an essential element of PST mentoring. It is important for you as a Mentor to know what to observe, how to observe and how to record your observations. It is also an important technique that your PST will need to skillfully develop.
AITSL recognises this - AITSL introducing classroom observation (pdf)
Equally important is the skill of engaging in productive and professional conversation.
AITSL recognises this as well - AITSL_Ways of providing feedback (Word)
Recording your Observations
Below are (Word Documents) that we believe provide a good basis for recording your observations. Samples are provided in recognition that ‘one size does not fit all’.
- Template_Classroom Observation (Word doc)
- Template_Classroom Observation (pdf)
- Template_PCK Lesson observation (Word doc)
- Template_PCK Lesson observation(pdf)
- Sample_Observation template_Hunter’s lesson elements (pdf)
- Sample_Observation template_PCK (pdf)
- Sample_Observation template_Standards matrix (pdf)
- Sample_Lesson observation template_Learning in Action (pdf)
- Sample_Peer Observation template_Mt Stromlo High (pdf)
- Sample_Lesson Observation and T chart_courtesy of Mark Shiels (pdf)
Professional conversations
Lesson Plans
PSTs are expected to lesson plan each teaching episode (example lesson plan template). The Lesson Plan can be modified by the PST to align with the requirements of the school, but should include certain elements including a reflection section. You can expect your PST to submit a conforming Lesson Plan to you. To help you anticipate what that is, we have annotated example Lessons Plans for:
PE Manual for PSTs
PSTs are provided a manual to guide them through the Professional Experience Placement process. It is updated every year. Here is a link to the latest - Professional Experience Manual.
Conflict of Interest for PSTs
When undertaking their Final Placement, PSTs are bound by UC’s Conflict of Interest Policy - Conflict of Interest Policy (pdf opens in a new tab).
In certain circumstances PSTs may apply for an Exemption to that Policy so that they can undertake their preferred Placement. To apply for an Exemption, PSTs will need to complete a COI exemption and submit it a minimum of 10 weeks prior to the placement starting. The Form needs to be co-signed by the PST and either the School Principal or the School SPEC. PSTs will access this through internal UC platforms.
Placement Locations for PSTs
The vast majority of Professional Experience placements for PSTs occur in the ACT and surrounding region. However, opportunities do arise for PSTs to undertake Placements further afield. To take advantage of this opportunity a PST preparing to undertake an Intermediate or Final level placement will need to complete an online form available through internal UC platform. The details and criteria are on the form. The PST may need the help of the School Principal or Professional Experience co-ordinator for some aspects of the Form, particularly if there are specific pre-placement requirements at the school.
PST Standards
Professional Engagement and Learning
PSTs:
- Attend meetings, duties, school activities and any opportunities for engagement with the broader school community
- Conduct themselves in a professional and ethical manner whilst in schools including seeking and using feedback on their performance
- Interact with teachers, students and the school community in an appropriate manner and comply with all relevant ethical and legal requirements
- Collect evidence of curriculum ideas, strategies, timetables, school policy documents, teaching resources, lesson plans, units of work and other relevant documentation to help them demonstrate their knowledge of the Australian Graduate Teaching Standards.
General Expectations
- It is expected that every teaching episode at all Placement levels has a lesson plan which we recommend is provided to the mentor 24 hours prior to the lesson taking place. We do understand this may not always be realistic, so we leave this up to the mentor to determine what they deem appropriate eg. the morning of. The bottom line for us is, no lesson plan = no teach. This would include if the lesson plan presented is not of an acceptable standard or if it has not been presented to the mentor within the timeframe required
- PSTs are involved in lesson planning and programming at UC. Our standard lesson plan template can be modified by the PST to align with the requirements of the school but a reflection section is expected
- On completing each lesson, we expect the PST to reflect on the lesson (plan and delivery) with their mentor and document their reflections so they can refer to them for future planning
- We expect the PST to be involved in regular debriefs with their mentor (verbal and/or written).
- At the midway point of a placement we ask that the mentor uses the placement report form to provide feedback against the Graduate Teacher Standards for their PST's level of placement. This is an opportunity for the mentor to more formally link current progress to these standards (can be done in dot points). This gives the PST a clear understanding of areas of strength at that point in time and areas which need further development.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
1. What is the role of a mentor at the 海角射区?
Mentors support preservice teachers (PSTs) by helping them develop as graduate teachers. They guide PSTs in understanding professional responsibilities and attitudes and assist them in identifying and filling gaps in their knowledge and skills.
2. What is the process for requesting intervention and support?
Intervention and support can be requested at any time if there are concerns about the successful completion of a placement. The request should be made by the Mentor Teacher (MT) or School Professional Experience Coordinator (SPEC) to the UC Faculty Placement Team via email at peoffice@canberra.edu.au.
3. How does mentoring a preservice teacher contribute to professional learning?
Mentoring a preservice teacher attracts up to 5 hours of TQI teacher-identified professional learning. Mentors should register this professional learning with TQI each time they mentor a UC preservice teacher.
4. What reports are required for professional experience placements?
- Beginning: Final report.
- Intermediate (if more than 10 days): Interim and final reports.
- Final: Interim and final reports, plus the Teacher Performance Assessment (TPA).
5. What are the expectations for professional knowledge and practice?
- Beginning: Plan and reflect on lessons, engage learners, analyse assessment data, differentiate teaching.
- Intermediate: Support diverse learners, plan and deliver lessons, use assessment data, maintain safe and effective classroom learning environments.
- Final: Demonstrate subject knowledge, engage all students, maintain safe and effective classroom learning environments, use assessment data, differentiate teaching, take leadership of the classroom at 80% of teacher load by the final stages of the placement.
6. What are the expectations for professional engagement and learning?
- Attend meetings, duties, and school activities.
- Conduct themselves professionally and ethically.
- Collect evidence of teaching practices and resources.
7. What are the general expectations for lesson planning and reflection?
- Provide lesson plans to mentors 24 hours prior.
- Reflect on lessons with mentors.
- Regular debriefs with mentors.
- MT and PST collaborate to write placement report/s.
8. Who can I contact for more information or support?
- For additional support, mentors can reach out to the UC Faculty Placement Team via email at peoffice@canberra.edu.au.